Leno and Conan: Leno claims they both got screwed

Leno claims they both got screwed" href="http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2010/04/01/leno-conan-leno-claims-screwed/">Conan got screwed, and I got screwed”. Jay Leno also said that he completely expects Conan to start his own competing late-night show after Sept. 1. Conan O’Brien hasn’t been left out in the cold, though – he got $ 32 million to leave the Tonight Show – quite the debt settlement relief expense for NBC.

A blundered prime-time experiment

Instead of retire, Jay Leno began a prime-time variety show after he turned the Tonight Show over to Conan O’Brien. Many NBC affiliates saw their 11pm ratings drop by double digits after the prime time show premiered. After only a few months, NBC decided to end the Jay Leno show and kick Conan O’Brien off the Tonight show.

Joy Behar gets a backstage interview

Before going on the Tonight Show, Joy Behar taped an interview with Leno in the Tonight Show green room. Beyond just talking about Conan, Jay Leno also spoke of how he thinks TV works and his philosophy of comedy. Leno told her “The reason how business pays lots of cash is, whenever you get screwed you’ve something left over (sic)”. Never one to put all his eggs in one basket, Leno flew to Vegas to perform his stand-up show after taping both interviews.

Team CoCo goes on the road

The terms of O’Brien’s small personal loan from NBC stipulated that he cannot return to TV until September. Rather than sitting around or planning his new show, Conan O’Brien has taken his show on the road. With tour dates around the country, “Team Coco” is quickly selling out everywhere it goes. Will Conan fulfill Jay’s expectation that O’Brien will return to live TV? Definitely with the amount of supporters he's got, it wouldn't be such a bad idea. If any channels are in discussions with Conan O’Brien, they’re staying mum about it.